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Below are the most recent 25 friends' journal entries.
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| Saturday, July 26th, 2008 |
scarfman
|
9:12a |
Finders Keepers 1/5; the Doctor, Mulder, Scully; PG In May 1997 this story was my first attempt to write Usenet fanfiction that was long enough to be serialized (aside from a redraft of something I'd written in 1981). I crossposted the chapters weekly to alt.drwho.creative and the X-Files fanfiction newsgroup, though I didn't read the X-Files group and I don't recall whether I got any response there. I tend to count August 1997 as the beginning of my serious internet fanfiction career, because that was when I posted the first chapter of Historical Revision and initiated my commitment to post a chapter a week, which commitment lasted until I started posting daily cartoons instead. But this was really the beginning. Title: Finders Keepers 1/5 Author: scarfman Characters/Pairing: the Doctor, Mulder, Scully Rating: PG Setting (spoilers through): both franchises c. 1993 Disclaimer: This work is derivative of property of the BBC and 20th Century Fox. No profit shall be made and no market of the owner(s) is infringed upon. Summary: While Mulder and Scully investigate a laboratory accident with outside help during the first days of their association, Scully has a professional crisis. This story was written backwards, or sideways. First I had several scenes occur to me that I'd like to see in a Doctor Who/X-Files crossover, and then I constructed a plot around them. The notes that will be posted with the last chapter describe which scenes they were. crossposted scarfman dwfiction crossing_who ( ''I'm afraid you're going to have to come with us, sir,'' said Scully.
''Well,'' said the Doctor, ''I prefer to work alone, but if you want to help ...'' ) |
| Friday, July 25th, 2008 |
chicafrom3
|
5:41p |
i can bench press a car, i'm an ex-football star... So, that 15-unpopular-Doctor-Who-opinions meme that's going around. I don't actually know how unpopular these particular opinions are, but nevertheless they're ones I don't see being talked about much. ( under here ) Current Music: Brand New Day - Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog |
bibliophile1887
|
4:15p |
Todays book link She actually seems like a decent and nice enough person here. (Well, apart from spending half the year living in Paris. Actually, scratch that, I've been to Paris and didn't like it at all. She can have it if she wants it.) I guess it's a shame, then that I can't stand the dreck she writes. Or maybe it's not a shame, because I don't subject myself to it. Current Mood: busy avoiding work |
scarfman
|
11:39a |
Huh. Went Friday to Friday without posting anything this week. Well, here's something I thought about posting yesterday and never did. I see a lot of people posting with (to put it, in some cases, mildly) consternation in reaction to news that The Day The Earth Stood Still and/or that The Rocky Horror Picture Show are being remade. My comments at the first of these posts that I saw: But that's how legends live: they get reenvisioned for new times. Where would we be today if Caxton had said to Malory, "But all you've done is retold the French romances in English"? Mind you, I'm not denying the basic principle of Sturgeon's Law here, nor that true classics deserve and will continue to receive due veneration. But it's also true that Shakespeare never invented a plot in his life, and no one cares. |
scarfman
|
10:31a |
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| Thursday, July 24th, 2008 |
bibliophile1887
|
2:53p |
Book Links for Today Thanks to Bookninja for the heads up about this: Amazon.com is just a big bully. It's well known that Amazon.com sells things at a loss because they are hoping you'll purchase some of their more expensive items. Why else would they sell Blu-ray DVDs at 40% off retail? But if they want to sell things at a loss, that's their problem. Why inflict that problem onto publishers and authors? Granted, the authors mentioned in the article (King and Patterson) are best-selling authors and them losing a bit of moolah probably isn't the end of the world. But it's damned difficult to do well in writing. It's so very hard to become a bestselling author. There are thousands and thousands of struggling authors out there, and a move like this by Amazon.com is just making it more and more difficult for them to survive. Which is a shame, because they are usually the ones who (a) thoroughly enjoy writing and (b) are usually pretty darned good at it. It may seem terribly hypocritical of me to be talking bad about Amazon.com, when I'm registered with them. And yeah, it probably is. But I can say that once the wedding is behind me, I'll probably start purchasing books and DVDs from more local retailers. And if that means paying more, so be it.
Also thanks to Bookninja for the link to this article. I'm reading The Beach House right now, actually. I'm about 130 pages in, and there are several things about it that are good and interesting. But several things about it that piss me off greatly. Most I'll save for the review, but this article brings up one thing about chick lit that bugs me so very much. It's all about money. All of it. Having it and knowing were to spend it. Oh, I understand that fiction books are another form of entertainment (usually), and are therefore treated as escapism. Therefore why not dream big? After all, who would want to read a story about a single mother living in a trailer, having to work two jobs so her three kids can have clothes and food? It's not fun, it's not escapism. It's realism. And if that mother can provide for her children, and her children grow up to respect and admire their mother, then I'd say that book served its purpose. A heartwarming story of how sometimes rough situations can turn into good. The only thing the chick lit books are doing is making those of us without (which is a lot) try to buy the things in the books and it all ends up with the foreclosure rates we have today. Or it makes those of us without, feel even more like the poverty-line-living people we are, because we can't afford to buy those fancy-schmancy things. Okay, I'm probably exaggerating, but not by much. It's all about keeping up with the Joneses, and if the Jones in question happens to be in a book, then that's okay. We have to buy that Gucci handbag or those precious shoes. Okay, not all women read chick lit, and not all women have to go out and buy the things that are "advertised" in the books. But I'd be willing to bet that there are more women out there wanting these things so that they can hobnob with the rich and powerful just like the characters in the books they read. But don't worry. The publishers are getting a head start with influencing the desires of women. And while Shashi's article wasn't about this same topic, and least she admits to being disgusted by it, too.
And finally, for those of you who watched Saved By the Bell, and loved it as much as I did, Screech is writing a tell-all book about his thirteen years with the show. I will admit to being terribly interested in it, yes.
And one library related link, because (a) it's so funny because (b) it's so damned true. Happens every time the servers go out. Current Mood: working |
options3000
|
1:30p |
Marriage, Faith, and Change This is a bit of a sequel to the last post, dealing with how faith will play a role in married life for Samantha and myself. Those of you who know us both know that we have different approaches to our beliefs. Samantha's faith comes from long term involvement in her denomination(her family goes back 4 generations). She has a seminary education and knows what she believes and why, even though, as she sometimes points out, apologetics is not her forte. My faith is more experiential and instinctual , as I see it. It is based on spirit more than on what I read in any text, though I find sacred texts to be sources of wisdom, insight, and enlightenment. We both decided early on that it is important to us to attend a church together and thereby grow together spiritually. Attending separately is something that we do not wish to consider. Our challenge is that she does not agree overall with Unitarian Universalist theology, and I tend to find most traditional Christian churches to be spiritually stifling. We will be searching for a church that can meet both our needs. I personally am really interested in the liberal Quaker churches in this area, and there is a Presbyterian Church that may fit the bill for me. I also think that I might find the United Church of Christ to my liking. I love my UU church and the people in it. I currently sing in the choir and it is one of my great joys. There is something going on there seven days a week , so I know that I will find some way to continue involvement there, even if it is more limited. An outside option would be to attend services together at two different places, thus meeting both our needs. The way services are scheduled now, that wouldn't really be a problem. I don't think this is what we really want, but I haven't completely discarded that option. One thing is certain. The experience is going to be interesting, and I am really looking forward to growing from it. I'll leave it to Samantha to correct anything that I may have misrepresented about her faith. I think that I got it pretty well right, however. Love to you all! Current Mood: peaceful |
| Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008 |
options3000
|
10:46p |
My Radical Faith -My Journey of Faith -Part II I was raised in a fundamentalist Bible-Belt church that was firmly rooted in Armenian theology. The experience was a bad one, as I discussed in my first post on my faith from May. 2nd, 2008. When my father passed away in 1989, I felt a spiritual presence in the room that took me from from atheist to believer in a spiritual dimension. I really never did anything about it, though. After about 30 years of what I would describe as a spiritual wilderness, I felt a strong pull toward the spiritual in my life in 2006. I realized that in order to move forward spiritually, I had to jettison my past and start anew. I started reading the Bible again for the first time in years. However, I couldn't get past the literalism that I grew up with. My rational side could not accept some of the things that were taught me all those years ago. The light started breaking through when I discovered Joseph Campbell and Wayne Dyer. Campbell's The Power of Myth DVD helped me see that the literal interpretation that I'd been subjected to was not the only interpretation of the Bible. Moreover, It wakened me to the fact that the symbols in the Bible had shared meanings with symbols of other religions of the world. Taking the Bible as literal history was to miss the point. Wayne Dyer's special on PBS, The Power of Intention, stirred within me a knowledge of how to discover that ultimate Source that many, including myself, refer to as God. The greatest thing that I really discovered was the truth of ultimate unconditional love. The battle within me between all the old teachings and the new realizations culminated in me crying at a friend's home late one night. I opened myself up to God, the Divine Ground of All Being. I prayed, not as one who needed forgiveness of great sin, but as one who felt empty inside and weary of seemingly going it alone. I felt peace, and a love that I'd never truly experienced, not because it was newly given, but because I opened myself up to it. I realized that what I felt was the complete antithesis of all that I'd been taught. This was not about doing what you were told to do or converting others. I decided to start attending church and was immediately drawn to the Unitarian Universalist movement. I felt at home the first time that I attended the UU Church of Greensboro. The idea that people from all different spiritual belief systems and from all different lifestyles could come together and worship as community was liberating, and helped me to grow. I began to discover more about my own history as a Christian. I now know that there have been others who have possessed similar understanding to mine, though many of them were branded as heretics...mainly because their beliefs took power away from the organized church and put the emphasis solely on individual faith. I also began to see the common threads running through all faiths, and the importance of depending on the guidance of spirit, rather than the doctrine of an organized church. It is my belief that anytime a religion turns to an us against them or exclusivist mentality, it has gone astray. In my spiritual library, one will find sacred texts from most major religions, books on mythology (many by Campbell), and religion and psychology. I learn from it all and am fascinated by the light that one religion can shine on aspects of another. A Buddhist or Hindu text can show me a Christian text in a completely different light. Here, then, are some of the tenets of my personal faith. You may accept any or none of these. You may ask me questions, but don't expect me to argue points of faith. I respect your beliefs , regardless of what they are. 1) Faith and sincerity are more important than a belief system. 2) Fear of punishment is never an adequate deterrent to sin, but true unconditional love will make one wish to do right, rather than wrong. 3) As Jesus experienced the Christ within and shared it without, so can we. We all have Christ nature within us. It just needs to be realized. 4) The death of Jesus on the cross was not about paying blood debt for sin as salvation, but about the redemptive power of love as salvation. The message that the Kingdom of God was come and is within, and that Jesus was thereby one with God, cost him his life, because he sacrificed himself to bring the message of unconditional love to everyone. I should probably capitalize Love here, because I am talking about transcendent Love, the kind that we can feel within us, but feels like it is coming from beyond us and we are a channel for it. It is because I believe and try to follow Jesus' example that I call myself a Christian. 5) The study of religion must be metaphorical in nature, because there is no way to use literal interpretation and truly describe that which is transcendent. 6) My view of God is panentheistic. 7) All will be reconciled to God, with no one lost. Many of these views brand me as a heretic, even in today's age. So be it. My life has been transformed through my faith. The changes I've experienced are real and visible to those who have known me over the years. Namaste and blessings on you all. Current Mood: peaceful |
bibliophile1887
|
3:32p |
HEY YOU!!! Go vote at bladdericontest, huh? We need more votes before we can move on to the next round. Ta muchly. |
bibliophile1887
|
10:27a |
Top 50 Crime Authors: Male Biased In addition to what I said yesterday, I find this article today. The other woman on the Times Top 50 panel was Val McDermid, who won the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award in 2006. She says that part of the problem is that “the overwhelming number of readers of crime fiction are women, but most of the people who write about crime are men. Women are still conditioned to defer. We are less likely to push ourselves into the limelight. And we are less likely to get our agents or publicists to run to the papers with every little thing we do.” YAY for Val! Half of the four person panel was female, and yet only 26% of the top 50 authors were female. I prefer female authors who write crime fiction (suspense, thriller, murder, whatever). Oh, I read books by male authors, but if I see a suspense book by a female author, I'm more likely to pick it up. Which is why I'm going to read Cain's new one, even though I'm not anticipating much out of it. Simply because she's female. I do read/have read some books by male authors (Ted Dekker, Tom Rob Smith, Paul Johnston, and if you want to count Jasper Fforde and Christopher Moore even though their stories are more humor than crime). But I just read more books by female authors. I'm sure that means something. Current Mood: contemplative |
| Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008 |
chicafrom3
|
11:47p |
(everything you ever) and i won't feel (a thing) From fandom_memes: Give me a character or pairing (that I have *NOT* written before) in any of my main fandoms, and a 1 to 3 word prompt, and I'll write a drabble or short ficlet for them.For the curious, you can browse the tags at fandomfrom3 to see what I have written before. (Although some of them indicate what I've iconed but haven't written...whatever. You guys know me.) ...And if you could try to stay away from the characters/pairings I find really hard (you know those, too!), that would be awesome, but I understand if you're eager to torment me. Current Music: Everything You Ever - Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog |
jedichad
|
8:30p |
Estelle Getty of 'Golden Girls' dies at 84 LOS ANGELES (AP) - Estelle Getty, the diminutive actress who spent 40 years struggling for success before landing a role of a lifetime in 1985 as the sarcastic octogenarian Sophia on TV's ``The Golden Girls,'' has died. She was 84. Getty, who suffered from advanced dementia, died at about 5:30 a.m. Tuesday at her Hollywood Boulevard home, said her son, Carl Gettleman of Santa Monica. ``Estelle always wanted to be an actress, and she achieved that goal beyond her dreams,'' former ``Golden Girls'' co-star Rue McClanahan told The Associated Press. ``Don't feel sad about her passing. She will always be with us in her crowning achievement, Sophia.'' ``The Golden Girls,'' featuring four female retirees sharing a house in Miami, grew out of NBC programming chief Brandon Tartikoff's belief that television was ignoring its older viewers. Three of its stars had already appeared in previous series: Bea Arthur in ``Maude,'' Betty White in ``The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' and McClanahan in ``Mama's Family.'' The last character to be cast was Sophia Petrillo, the feisty 80-something mother of Arthur's character. ``Our mother-daughter relationship was one of the greatest comic duos ever, and I will miss her,'' Arthur said in a statement. When she auditioned, Getty was appearing on stage in Hollywood as the carping Jewish mother in Harvey Fierstein's play ``Torch Song Trilogy.'' In her early 60s, she flunked her ``Golden Girls'' test twice because it was believed she didn't look old enough to play 80. ``I could understand that,'' she told an interviewer a year after the show debuted. ``I walk fast, I move fast, I talk fast.'' She came prepared for the third audition, however, wearing dowdy clothes and telling an NBC makeup artist, ``To you this is just a job. To me it's my entire career down the toilet unless you make me look 80.'' The artist did, Getty got the job and won two Emmys. ``The only comfort at this moment is that although Estelle has moved on, Sophia will always be with us,'' White said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. ``The Golden Girls'' culminated a long struggle for success during which Getty worked low-paying office jobs to help support her family while she tried to make it as a stage actress. ``I knew I could be seduced by success in another field, so I'd say, 'Don't promote me, please,''' she recalled. She also appeared in small parts in a handful of films and TV movies during that time, including ``Tootsie,'' ``Deadly Force'' and ``Victims for Victims: The Theresa Saldana Story.'' After her success in ``The Golden Girls,'' other roles came her way. She played Cher's mother in ``Mask,'' Sylvester Stallone's in ``Stop or My Mom Will Shoot'' and Barry Manilow's in the TV film ``Copacabana.'' Other credits included ``Mannequin'' and ``Stuart Little'' (as the voice of Grandma Estelle). ``The Golden Girls,'' which ran from 1985 to 1992, was an immediate hit, and Sophia, who began as a minor character, soon evolved into a major one. Audiences particularly loved the verbal zingers Getty would hurl at the other three. When McClanahan's libidinous character Blanche once complained that her life was an open book, Sophia shot back, ``Your life's an open blouse.'' ``I always told her she should be a standup comic. She was so funny in person,'' McClanahan recalled. ``She would always say, 'Why couldn't we make these characters Jewish? Why am I Sicilian?''' Getty had gained a knack for one-liners in her late teens when she did standup comedy at a Catskills hotel. Female comedians were rare in those days, however, and she bombed. Undeterred, she continued to pursue a career in entertainment, and while her parents were encouraging, her father also insisted that she learn office skills so she would have something to fall back on. Born Estelle Scher to Polish immigrants in New York, Getty fell in love with theater when she saw a vaudeville show at age 4. She married New York businessman Arthur Gettleman (the source of her stage name) in 1947, and they had two sons, Carl and Barry. The marriage prevailed despite her long absences on the road and in ``The Golden Girls.'' Getty was evasive about her height, acknowledging only that she was ``under 5 feet and under 100 pounds.'' McClanahan said her nickname for Getty was ``Slats.'' ``Because she was so short, itty-bitty,'' she said. In addition to her son Carl, Getty is survived by son Barry Gettleman, of Miami; a brother, David Scher of London; and a sister, Rosilyn Howard of Las Vegas. Associated Press Writers Robert Jablon and Solvej Schou contributed to this report. Current Mood: sad |
bibliophile1887
|
9:41a |
Not really surprising I bet if you included make-up artists and costume designers, these numbers would go up. Okay. Surprising? No. Aggravating? Sure. I still need to read the full article here, but I don't have the time at the moment. (Am too busy spamming my f-list.) I'm quite pleased with myself in that I read more women authors, but then this article isn't about female authors. But that was this first thing that came into my head upon reading this little blurb. Current Mood: spamming my f-list |
| Monday, July 21st, 2008 |
bibliophile1887
|
11:26a |
Chelsea Cain writes again I wasn't overly impressed with her first book. I've just seen today that she's got a new one out in September. I'm sufficiently intrigued enough to want to read it. Like I said, I wasn't impressed with her first book. However, I wasn't impressed with Stella Rimmington's first book, but her books have gotten better. I thoroughly enjoyed her most recent Illegal Action, even if there was a moment I wondered why the heroine was suddenly an idiot. *shrug* (I still need to write my review for it, though. As well as a review for Fearless Fourteen - which was really crap.) All that to say that there are several books out this fall that I really want to read, and since I won't be working at the library anymore I'm going to have to either (a) go broke buying books or (b) get a library card once I get settled in down there with Kirk. Current Mood: geeky |
| Sunday, July 20th, 2008 |
chicafrom3
|
11:38p |
hey, cowgirl, won't you mosey on into my world In honor of International Day of Femslash... Picspam! (Not quite as long, involved, or varied as I'd like it to be, but I stuck to canon (or at least canon-ish) pairings that I happened to have caps of, so...yeah.) ( WILL EAT YOUR DIALUP. But is lots of pretty girls! ) |
chicafrom3
|
12:34p |
oh. sarcasm. that's original. ( SPOILERS for Psych 3x01 Ghosts )Overall: Powerful episode. Psych does emotional drama, and does it well. James Roday gets a chance to remind everyone that he can do genres besides constant comedy. And it still feels like Psych, it's still got the humor and the buddy elements and everybody's there even if for only about twelve seconds (Jules, what happened to you? Working a case without any backup or what?) A great start to the season. ( story from real life and related ponderings that got longer than I thought they would )Today is the first exchange of our Secret Santa. I am...slightly nervous about delivering my first gift. Um. (I told our dresser I didn't know how I was going to smuggle it in without my recipient -- or any of the cast, since they have a cultural aversion to secrets apparently -- seeing it. She said "Bring it in a bag!" Then she said "Oh, wait, you never bring a bag and everyone will immediately know why you brought one." So, yeah.) FANNISH STUFF. In bits and pieces. BECAUSE. So, Dr. Horrible. Why, yes, I am a sucker for lonely-loser villains. Who sing their feelings. Add Dr. Horrible/Billy to my list of fannish crushes, gais. And one of my spot ops and I spent much of yesterday quoting it at each other. But. I'm really not happy about Penny. She had absolutely no agency throughout, barely had a personality, and totally failed to subvert any of the genre tropes I was hoping for. JOSS. I EXPECT BETTER OF YOU. You could have told the same awesome story in a much more awesome way by giving Penny some real personality and letting her make some active choices. However, I do have a Dr. Horrible icon now. [title of show] has made it to Broadway, that magical street of dreams (or that shameless commercial whore, depending). Have I talked about this on here yet? No, I don't think so. Anyway, I'm very very happy about it. And would kill to go see it. Now I just need Zanna Don't! and Evil Dead: The Musical to make it to the Great White Way. And a decent Chess revival. And a trip to New York with a lot of cash. My daddy is buying tickets for me and him and my mom to go see the touring cast of Spamalot this November. Like, right after my work contract ends. *bounces* My daddy's so cool. (And, he's vaguely alluded to possibly taking me and my mom to see Wicked when the touring cast passes through the area next May. Yespls?) I'm dying to see the new XF movie, and I know next to nothing about it having somehow totally failed to find any decent spoilers. But MULDER. SCULLY. MY FIRST REAL FANDOM. OMGYAY. I really want to write fic, but am totally failing to. All I can get is tiny, nonsensical bits and pieces. I've tried a couple 1sentence attempts because that's usually a pretty good writer's-block breaker for me, but I keep stalling out about halfway through every couple I try. *flail* Any advice? ...On the "accomplished!" side, I have a Lost Desmond/Penny vid finished that just needs to be uploaded and pimped out. Unlikely to happen today, though. On the grounds that I need to leave for work fairly soon. But soon? Hopefully. I like it. It's kind of a darker take on the pairing than I usually go for, and we all know screwing up the couples I love is like a drug to me. And I think it turned out pretty well, for being a study of the pairing rather than a straightforward story. ...oh, that just reminded me I have to hit up LVI and make sure no one else used that song for Des/Penny. Athough I doubt it. It's...not obscure, exactly, but neither is it what I expect most LVI vidders to be drawing upon for music choices? ...okay, that sounded all music-elitist and that's really not how I meant it. ...shutting up now before I offend anyone further. Besides, it's INTERNATIONAL DAY OF FEMSLASH! ...I would use a femslash icon here, but I kind of already committed myself to the Dr. Horrible one, didn't I? I'll try and do a picspam or something else to celebrate after work. But for now, I'm going to go feed. Because I'm hungry. |
glitterfairy25
|
11:24a |
Well what *else* could it be?? |
| Friday, July 18th, 2008 |
jedichad
|
11:14p |
Mamma Mia! Mom, Lea and I went to see it this afternoon, and it was brilliant! I haven't had that much fun at a movie in a long, long time. Highly recommended! Watch out for the Benny and Bjorn cameos :) Current Mood: ecstatic |
chicafrom3
|
11:13p |
If there are one or more people on your friends list who make your world a better place just because they exist, and who you would not have met (in real life or not) without the Internet, then post this same sentence in your journal. |
options3000
|
10:47p |
A Brilliant Dark Knight Current Mood: tired |
scarfman
|
8:48a |
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pmoodie
|
10:55a |
Happy Birthday ginasketch! :)Now, it is today, isn't it? LOL I hope you have a lovely day and get lots of prezzies, art-related and otherwise! :) |
| Thursday, July 17th, 2008 |
scarfman
|
6:16p |
So I read the headline in news that they're bringing back Basic Accounts. Then I read on my friendslist that they're not really the old-fashioned Basic Accounts like I have, they have ads, like the intermediate account type between Basic and Paid that was brought out about a year ago. Then I'm editing at one of my old entries, and I see ads. It'd prolly be a minimal amount of research for me to find this out myself, but it's partly a rhetorical question: So, is there any point anymore to me not upgrading to the intermediate ad-based account type, for the additional features - or does it exist any more? (If not, do I now have the additional features along with the ads?) Edit On second look, it's the new sitemap I'm looking at. I took it for GoogleAds. |
jedichad
|
2:16p |
Hot! What a day we're having! The central air's out of coolant--we've got to wait till 8 tonight for the guy to come and put some in--plus the stove's on the blink! Mom and I are baking! We're going out to eat soon, then piddle round the mall till it gets close to 8. :: dying :: Current Mood: hot |
| Monday, July 14th, 2008 |
antiwesley
|
11:48p |
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